Iberia celebrates 70th anniversary of first flight to New York
On August 3, 1954, one of Iberia’s three Super Constellations, the one named Santa Maria, flew for the first time between Madrid and New York. Five days later, scheduled flights began.
The first flight between Madrid and New York, which lasted 15 hours due to weather conditions (although nine to ten hours was normal), had capacity for 19 passengers in its first class cabin and 55 in economy.
Iberia operated this route three times a week and tickets were priced at $436 in first class and $334 in economy.
The route between Madrid and New York was consolidated during the following years and proof of its success was the increase in the number of passengers. In the first five months of its operation, from August to December, nearly 2,000 people were transported. The following year it reached 7,300. After 25 years, in 1979, this route had carried more than 2.2 million passengers.
→ Iberia celebrates 75 years of flights to Puerto Rico and Venezuela
To commemorate such a special day, Iberia Cabin Crewmember Andres Iwasaki surprised passengers on IB6251 on Saturday, August 3, 2024, with a performance of Frank Sinatra’s NEW YORK, NEW YORK.
Super Constellation, a boost to commercial aviation
The incorporation of three Super Constellations allowed the opening of regular routes to the other side of the Atlantic, such as New York, Havana or Buenos Aires. In 1952, the Spanish airline purchased three Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellations. The first arrived in Madrid on June 24, 1954. The three new aircraft were named after Christopher Columbus’ three caravels: Santa Maria, Niña and Pinta.
These aircraft were faster and had greater range than the DC-4s (550 km/h vs. 365 km/h and 8,300 km range vs. 6,800 km, respectively), and were also pressurized, which increased passenger comfort by allowing them to fly higher and avoid some of the bad weather.
Iberia in New York today
Iberia currently flies twice daily between Madrid and New York with the Airbus A350-900, the quietest model on the market, which is also 30% to 35% more fuel efficient than its predecessors, thanks to the latest generation materials used in its construction and the advanced design of its Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines. This model can carry up to 348 passengers in three different cabins: Business (31 passengers), Premium Economy (24 passengers) and Economy (293 passengers).
In 2024, the Spanish airline has put on sale nearly 435,000 seats to fly between the Spanish capital and the Big Apple. In addition to flights to New York, Iberia flies to seven other destinations in the United States: Miami, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas Fort Worth, San Francisco and Washington.
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